If this is your first visit, be sure to
check out the FAQ by clicking the
link above. You may have to register
before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages,
select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

is the histogram after internal JPG processing of the camera? I do not think you see the RAW image on the LCD, either. I could be wrong ... I've not been that intensive in dealing with it.

This is a question for those heroes over at Dyxum. They want to fight for the mountain top ... ask 'em.

Damn good question, though. Thumbs up for asking, Frank.

Last edited by DonSchap; 09-07-2010 at 05:22 PM.

Don Schap - BFA, Digital Photography A Photographer Is ForeverLook, I did not create the optical laws of the Universe ... I simply learned to deal with them.
Remember: It is usually the GLASS, not the camera (except for moving to Full Frame), that gives you the most improvement in your photography.flickr® & Sdi

Yep ... that's the question. Local intelligence says it is a "processed" image ... but, I don't know that for certain. I did not build the thing. Great question, though ... get Dyxum involved ... see what falls out.

Don Schap - BFA, Digital Photography A Photographer Is ForeverLook, I did not create the optical laws of the Universe ... I simply learned to deal with them.
Remember: It is usually the GLASS, not the camera (except for moving to Full Frame), that gives you the most improvement in your photography.flickr® & Sdi

S3000 is correct, the histogram that appears on the LCD is representative of a processed JPEG.
It will alter depending on the in-camera settings you choose, for instance applying a "creative style" or changing the White Balance.
Choosing RAW does not alter the Histogram from it's JPEG representation.

The Histogram is most affected by the White Balance adjustment curve applied to the Sensor Data because of differing Channel sensitivities.
For instance, say the Green channel is 1.0, it can take a linear multiplier of up to 2.5 to equalise the RED Channel.
Because Sony (anyone) don't want accusations of blown highlights, the worst scenario, they take a conservative approach to the Histogram representation such that a scene within the camera's dynamic range will be somewhat underexposed. This is why, when we process from RAW, there is a seemingly miraculous additional 1+EV stops of headroom.

It is possible to "fool" the camera into showing a RAW Histogram by using Uni White Balance settings. This involves neutralising any JPEG settings and choosing a WB value that results in the camera applying multipliers of 1.0 to all three channels. Because the Green Channels is the most sensitive by dint of having more green pixels (mimicking the human eye), the resultant image is heavily green tinted but at least the Histogram tells the truth.

Just some practical experimenting ...

To further understand this ... I ran some "Quality" tests on the α700 ... RAW against JPEGVery Fine ... changing the Creative Styles, which directly affect the JPEG processing in the camera ... and regardless of whether it was in RAW or JPEG ... the LCD reflected the Creative Style selection, as Peter detailed.

In this case, it was a very saturated Vivid +3 +3 +3 from my standard custom AdobeRGB +1 +2 -2 -1 "reduce the high-ISO noise while you are in JPEG mode" setting. (Shhh ... don't tell anyone, it'll be our secret setting for getting ISO-3200 stuff to look a lot better. This is where the α700 really excels with Creative Styles customization.)

Anyway ... the LCD and resultant histogram is a JPEG interpretation ... as we all now have shared. Thank you for asking that very important question, Frank, as it truly has improved my understanding of what is a happenin' in there and I hope the readership has benefited from it.

Last edited by DonSchap; 09-08-2010 at 05:52 AM.

Don Schap - BFA, Digital Photography A Photographer Is ForeverLook, I did not create the optical laws of the Universe ... I simply learned to deal with them.
Remember: It is usually the GLASS, not the camera (except for moving to Full Frame), that gives you the most improvement in your photography.flickr® & Sdi